"Albania is obliged to adopt such a measure as a serious drought has affected hydroelectric power stations," national electricity distribution company KESH said in a statement.

The cuts, for 10 to 13 hours a day, had to be made because there was a risk that water at the power stations would run out and bring a complete halt to electricity production, the authorities said.

The rationing would also affect hospitals and industrial bakeries for at least five hours a day.

The measure would additionally hit Albania's water pumping stations, which were already in such a bad state that households could only receive water for about three hours a day.

On top of the drought, Albania's energy crisis is also due to the bad shape of hydroelectric power plants, the country's only electricity source, and a lack of foreign investment in the sector in the past 16 years.

Built during the communist regime of dictator Enver Hoxha, the power plants were never adapted to handle increased consumption, particularly from households, that represent 70 percent of the country's total needs.

Rising prices and the fact that some 30 percent of consumers do not pay their bills have added to the problems authorities face in their bid to modernise the sector.

"If the energy crisis persists, the private sector will loose about 80 million dollars (66.6 million euros) in several months," Luan Bregasi of the Albanian Chamber of Commerce told reporters.

Albania imports almost five million kilowatts of electricity a year from Macedonia and Greece, but it is far from enough to cover country's needs.